Combat: Difference between revisions

| suggestedships    = [[Anaconda]]; [[Alliance Chieftain]]; [[Diamondback Scout]]; [[Eagle MkII]]; [[Federal Corvette]]; [[Federal Assault Ship]]; [[Fer-de-Lance]]; [[Krait MkII]]; [[Mamba]]; [[Python]]; [[Type-10 Defender]]; [[Viper MkIII]]; [[Vulture]]

| suggestedupgrades = [[Fighter Hangar]]; [[Frame Shift Drive Interdictor]]; [[Hull Reinforcement Package]]; [[Shield Generator]]; [[Thrusters]]; [[Chaff Launcher]]; [[Shield Cell Bank]]s; [[Bulkheads]]; Assorted Weapons

'''Combat''' is one of the three archetypal pilot [[roles]] recognized by the [[Pilots Federation]]. Combat encompasses multiple sub-roles, such as [[Assassin]], [[Bounty Hunter]], [[Mercenary]], and [[Pirate]]. Increasing Combat rank requires destroying other [[ships]], and defeating pilots with higher Combat ranks rewards a greater amount of experience. Combat pilots typically use [[Hardpoint]]s equipped with weapons to disable a target's shield, and then deal damage directly to the hull until the target is destroyed. Combat can be undertaken alone, in a [[Wings|Wing]], or in [[Multicrew]].

Combat rank is earned through ship kills. Every ship destroyed rewards a number of experience points that contribute to increasing Combat rank, and the amount of experience points that a ship is worth depends on the pilot's rank relative to the rank of the targeted ship. For example, a pilot with the rank of Harmless who kills an Elite ship will gain a large number of points, but a pilot with the rank of Deadly who kills a ship with a rank lower than Expert will receive no points at all. Furthermore, a Deadly pilot who kills an Elite ship will receive fewer points than the Harmless pilot who kills an Elite ship. Under this system, low-ranked pilots can climb ranks faster by destroying challenging opponents and accepting the risk that entails.<ref>[https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/answers-from-the-devs-2.167367/ Frontier Forums: Answers from the devs #2]</ref><ref>[https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/answers-from-the-devs-3.171025/ Frontier Forums: Answers from the Devs #3]</ref>

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! colspan="3"|''[[Elite Dangerous: Odyssey]]'' required to progress

[[Flight Assist]] (FA) is a tool that is very useful especially to newer players, but disabling it opens up many new abilities for a pilot in combat. Turning Flight Assist off ("FAOff") allows pilots to make sharper turns and more agile movements, and most importantly it allows pilots to decouple their flight vector from where they are aiming, which allows for much more unpredictable and evasive combat maneuvers.

Flight Assist Off is essential for more boom and zoom style combat where the attacker needs to turn and gain distance at the same time so that the bad pitch rate is less of an issue. Without mastering FA-off, even something small like an [[Eagle MkII]] can be troublesome when flying with a sluggish ship if it is equipped with nothing but gimballed weapons.<ref name=":0">https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/is-fa-off-the-answer-for-combat-flying.459810/page-4</ref>

It is recommended take a small [[ship]], such as a [[Viper MkIII]] or [[Imperial Courier]], and use it to practice combat and gain practical experience before tackling larger targets and bounty hunting for profit. Learning how to avoid mistakes in a cheaper ship can help a pilot to avoid mistakes in a more expensive one and pay for them at the rebuy screen. This can also help when flying larger ships, since pilots who start learning combat in larger ships tend to rely on their shields and firepower alone to overwhelm a target, and have no experience in avoiding incoming damage. This can be fatal in battles against well-armed foes.<ref name=":0" />

The general ship progression goes something like this:

# [[Krait Mk II]] or [[Python]] ([[Python Mk II]])

# Big 3 ([[Anaconda]], [[Federal Corvette|Corvette]], [[Imperial Cutter|Cutter]])

The list is optional. Almost any ship can do combat from the [[Sidewinder Mk I|Sidewinder]] to the [[Type-10 Defender|Type-10]] so just do what you prefer, but if you need a new ship, this is a good progression. It's easy to underestimate the difference between flying a nimble small fighter and a less nimble medium ship with a greater surface area that catches more stray fire. Don't rush to the big ships, because clearing a [[Conflict Zone (Signal Source)|Conflict Zone]] (CZ) and [[Resource Extraction Site]] (HazRes) will be less efficient if you're unskilled. Then you have to repair and rearm after a few targets.  

In general, a PvP ship should have weapons that don't use much, if any, ammunition, do good sustain damage and are easy to use. However, if you do [[Mission Board|missions]] which require [[Assassin|assassinating]] a single powerful target, other options are more viable.

FSD should be want A rated to get your ship to various locations, particularly [[engineers]].

File:A Beginner's Guide to Piracy - Elite Dangerous Piracy Guide 2024